Eugenio Derbez apologizes for criticizing Selena Gomez’s Emilia Pérez performance: ‘I was wrong’

MyI did the best I could with the time I was given,” wrote Gomez, who speaks Spanish in the film despite not being fluent.

Eugenio Derbez is apologizing to Selena Gomez for his “careless comments,” which criticized the actress for her Spanish-speaking efforts in the musical drama Emilia Pérez.

It all began with the CODA actor’s appearance on an upcoming episode of the Hablando de Cine podcast, where he slammed Gomez’ performance in the film, in which she speaks Spanish despite not being fluent.

Podcast host Gaby Meza agreed that while Gomez is a “very talented actress,” she thought the performance was hindered by her limited abilities as a Spanish-speaker.

“I feel she doesn’t know what she is saying, and if she doesn’t know what she’s saying, she can’t give her acting any nuance,” Meza said. “And that is why her performance is not only unconvincing but uncomfortable.”

Dear Selena, I truly apologize for my careless comments,” he began. “They are indefensible and go against everything I stand for. As Latinos, we should always support one another. There’s not excuse. I was wrong, and I deeply admire your career and your kind heart.”

He continued, “Emilia Pérez deserves to be celebrated, not diminished by my thoughtless remarks. I’m walking away from this with an important lesson learned. While I understand if you cannot accept my apology, please know it comes from the heart.”

Derbez agreed, expressing his surprise that “no one is talking about it,” but rationalized that fans of the multi-hyphenate may not realize the performance’s flaws if they are not Spanish-speakers themselves. He added that he enjoyed the film outside of Gomez’ role, but wondered why French director Jacques Audiard helmed the film, despite not speaking Spanish himself.

Derbez’ comments quickly made the rounds on social media, prompted a response from Gomez.

“I understand where you are coming from,” Gomez commented on a TikTok video of the interview. “I’m sorry I did the best I could with the time I was given. Doesn’t take away from how much work and heart I put into this movie.”